If you were hoping I was done questioning modern yoga, I regret to inform you: I’m not.
Going right into it today! There’s something missing in the way asana is commonly taught.
It’s not more poses, better alignment cues, or more information.
It’s the one thing that determines whether a student actually connects to themselves - or keeps outsourcing their body, their choices, and their inner authority to the teacher.
Autonomy.
When autonomy is missing, students learn to comply.
They learn to perform.
They learn to override their own sensations, instincts, and needs in favor of group dynamics or external approval.
And over time, that practice quietly teaches them something far bigger than how to move their body.
It teaches them to wait for permission.
But when autonomy is present, everything changes.
Students learn to consciously decide rather than defer their choices to an authority outside of themselves.
They stop waiting to be told what’s right and they begin taking responsibility for their own experience.
And in that process, something else comes back online.
Their intuition.
The subtle, quiet intelligence of the body - the felt sense that knows when to pause, when to stay, when to soften, and when to engage.
Asana becomes less about doing it “correctly” and more about listening honestly.
Trust is rebuilt – not in the teacher, not in the shape – but in themselves.
This isn’t about cueing “do whatever you want.”
True autonomy isn’t a lack of structure, it’s the presence of discernment.
It’s reconnecting people to their own inner authority by giving students context, options, and reasons to make choices that align with their personal needs in that moment.
And right now, this may be one of the most important
skills we can help people practice.
We live in a world that constantly trains us to hand our agency over to systems, "experts," leaders, and institutions.
Yoga, at its best, can be a place where that pattern is gently interrupted.
This is why my work centers on teaching asana as a tool for autonomy and conscious choice, not just physical output.
Because when students truly own their practice,
they don’t just move better -
they live better.
-Jennifer